How to Reuse Gelatin Scraps

By Kristina Werden

Do you like serving flavored gelatin cut into shapes, but hate the waste it creates? It seems like every time you make these cutouts, you're left with an even bigger pile of odds and ends that can't be served. It's easy to reuse these scraps by melting them down and resetting them in the refrigerator. The result is a slightly firmer sheet of gelatin, which can be used for more cutouts or cut into cubes and served in a dish with whipped cream.

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How To Reuse Gelatin Scraps

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Slice the scraps of gelatin left over from making cutouts into small cubes. The cubes do not have to be exactly the same size, but they should be around an inch square in size.

Fill the saucepan halfway with warm water. Place it on the stove and heat the water over medium heat until it is just barely simmering.

Fill the disposable pie pan with the gelatin cubes and place it on top of the saucepan of water. The pie pan should rest on top of the saucepan, not inside of it.

Stir the gelatin gently with the whisk while it melts. It should take less than five minutes for the gelatin to revert to liquid form.

Pour the liquid gelatin into the glass baking dish and chill in the refrigerator, checking it each hour. The gelatin is ready to cut and serve when it feels firm to the touch when poked.

Tips

After the gelatin is melted, add canned fruit to it before pouring it into the glass dish.

This trick only works well once per batch of gelatin. If you have leftover scraps from the reset gelatin, it's best to either eat them or throw them away.